Chair.



No. 680,608. Patented Aug'. I3, I90I. J. A. MANAHAN.

CHAIR.

(Application led Feb. 27, 1900.)

(No Model.)

i A Imi-J:

d m wnNEssEs. t 1 |NVENTOR BY I UNITED STATES PATENT @EEICE.

JOSEPH A. M ANAHAN, or NEW Yonn, N. Y.

CHAIR.

VSPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 680,608, dated August13, 1901.

Application filed February 27, 1900., Serial No. 6,742. (No model.) v

To aZZ wiz/0m, t 'may concern:

Beit known that I, JOSEPH A. MANAHAN, a citizen of the United States,residing in the borough of Manhattan, city and State of New York, haveinvented a new and useful Improvement in Chairs, of which the followingis a specilication.

My invention relates to hinged-back or reclining chairs, and has for itsobjectto provide means by which the position of the back can be readilyadjusted by the person sitting in the chair by means of a push-buttonreleaseing a friction-clutch or lock and enabling a tension-spring todraw the back from a reclining to a more nearly upright position, thesitter by the pressure of his back against the hinged chair-backlimiting the upward movement of the back or pressing it back to anypoint desired, at which point it will be arrested and securely lockedwhen the pushbutton is released.

A suitable embodiment of the invention is represented in theaccompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a side View of ahinged-back chair, showing a simple application of my invention. Fig. 2is a detached view of the parts of the adjusting device in perspective,showing also some modifications and improved details in the manner ofconstructing and applying the device. Fig. 3 is a det-ail verticalsection of the locking device in the plane of the connecting rod,showing the latter in elevation.

A represents one of the arms of the chair, C the frame thereof, and Bthe back, hinged at b. To the side of the back, some distance above thehinge thereof, I connect a tensionrod l by means of a pivot 2, which maybe permanently fixed to the back, as illustrated in Fig. 1, or for readyapplication to a chair already constructed I form a pivot 2 upon ascrew-clamp 3, as shown in Fig. 2, by which it may be secured to thechair-back at the required height. The rod 1 is preferably made flatfora portion of its length, as shown, for the purpose hereinafterdescribed, and passes through a guide-bracket 4 and is connected at itsforward end to a tension-'spring 5, which is attached in front at 6 tothe chair-frame, so as to exert tension and tend to draw the back Btoward vertical position. In order to lock the back in any inclinedposition at which it maybe set against the tension of the spring 5, Iprovide a rocking lock 7, inserted and turning concentrically within thebracket 4 and perforated with au aperature coinciding with those in thebracket through which the tension -rod 1 passes; but in order to producea locking effect the perforated locking device 7 is rigidly connected toan arm 8, extending forward beneath the arm A of the chair and connectedat its forward end to a tension-spring 9, the eect of which is to drawthe arm 8 up, and thereby rock the lock 7, so as to throw theperforation therein out of alinement with the apertures in the bracket4, thus binding the tension-rod 1 and forming a friction-clutch, bywhich the said rod is securelyheld, in any position in which it may beset. To release the rod 1 from the friction-clutch or lock, and therebypermit the back to move freely, I employa push-button 10, connected by arod l1 with the arm 8 and conveniently located in a socket within thechair-arm A, the head or top of the push-button 10 being preferablyiiush with the upper surface of thechair-arm, so as not to causeinconvenience or present an unsightly appearance.

In order to adapt the device to suit the dimensions and proportions ofthe chair to which it is to be applied, and thereby enable themanufacture of the device in large quantities ready for application tochairs of various sizes and shapes, I provide several means'ofadjustment, as follows: The iiat portion of the tension-rod 1 is formedin two parts 1 and 1b, as shown in Fig. 2, sliding one on the other andlocked in any position or length by a screw-clamp 12. In like manner thearm 8 of the locking device is formed in two parts 8 S with a lap orsliding joint, and it is ixed in any adjustment as to length by ascrew-clamp 16. The rod 1 is formed with a number of perforations 13 andltted to slide through a socket-rin g 14, to which the tension-spring 5is connected, so that the end of the rod may be made to project to anydistance within the spiral spring, and by means of a screw or pin 15,inserted in the socket ring or sleeve 14, the rod 1 may be fixed in anyposition with reference to the spring 5, and thereby the tension of thespring ad- IOC justed as required. The rear end of the rod 1 isconnected to the front end of the vpart 1a by means of a rivet 1, so asto make a hinged joint between the parts 1 and la. Such a connectionrenders it possible to adj ust the back of the chair into any positionwithout springing or bending the rod 1. The pushrod 11 is alsopreferably made in two parts sliding one Within the other and with asetscrew 17* for iixing the said push-rod in any position of adjustmentas to length in order to adapt the rod to the thickness of the chairarm.

To provide for adjustment of tension of the spring 9, which applies thelocking force to the clutch-lever 8, I prefer to connect the said springto the lever-arm 8, as shown in 2, by hooking the en d of the springinto an eye 1S on the end of a rod 19, passing loosely through avertical hole in the leverarm S and threaded at its lower end to receivea thumb-nut 20, bearing against the bottom of the arm 8, and by takingup the length of the rod 19 applying any desired tension to the spring.

17 represents a hinged door or shutter adapted to close the box orcasecontaining the tension-spring and locking device, so as to conceal thesame from view and present a finished appearance.

The representation of the shutter 17 in Fig. 1 may be regarded asforeshortened or broken off. impractice it is long enough to extend fromfront to back of the chair-frame, so as to completely cover and concealthe back-operating mechanism, and may be made of any desired verticalwidth.

The back-operating mechanism is applied to either side of the chair orto both sides, ifdesired.

Having thus described my invention, the following is what I claim afsnew therein' and desire to secure by Letters Patent:

The combination of the chairframe C, hinged back B, a tension-spring 5connected tothe chair-frame, a three-part tension-rod 1, the rear-endpart being pivotally connected to the chair-back, a lap-joint connectionbetween the rear-end part and the middle part, and a screw-clamp toadmit of their relative adjustment, and a pivotal connection between thelniddle part and the forward-end part, a socket-ring 14 on the latter,and a setscrew therefor, by means of which the tension-rod is connectedto the tension-spring, a guide-bracket through which the tensionrodpasses and by which it is guided, a friction -clutch 7 in said guide, anadjustable arm S operating said clutch, a push-button pivotallyconnected at one end of the arm 8, and a spring 9 for maintaining thepush-but t0n in an elevated position, substantially as set forth.

JOSEPH A. MANAHAN.

Witnesses:

OcTAvIUs KNIGHT, EDNA A. PEAsE.

